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Sunday, October 7, 2007

Louis Franklin Strikes Again

Louis Franklin, acting U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Alabama, just can't seem to stay away from issuing press releases. Every time, he issues a press release, he comes across as dishonest, hypersensitive, and unprofessional. And it gives folks like Scott Horton of Harper's and Glynn Wilson of Locust Fork World News & Journal a chance to take him apart.

A suggestion for Mr. Franklin: Leave public relations to the professionals. If you did ask a public-relations professional, he or she would tell you to keep your mouth shut and do your job.

But Sweet Lou can't resist the opportunity to issue a press release. This time it comes in the wake of revelations by Time magazine that the Bush Department of Justice ignored statements by Lanny Young that pointed to wrongdoing by Republicans Jeff Sessions and Bill Pryor while acting on Young's allegations against Democrat Don Siegelman.

This gives us another chance to enjoy a literary pummeling administered to Sweet Lou by Horton and Wilson.

Wilson guffaws at Franklin's charges related to "out-of-state" reporters, noting that numerous in-state media outlets, including his Web site, the Anniston Star, the Decatur Daily, and the Tuscaloosa News, have questioned the prosecution and the government's refusal to release documents to Congress.

Wilson also guffaws at Franklin's claim of recusal by U.S. Attorney Leura Canary. "So show us the documents, and especially the backdated recusal motion, stop hiding behind a dead court reporter for refusing to release any of the records in this case, and most especially the trial transcript."

Franklin has the audacity to suggest that Siegelman's defense lawyers should have filed a motion charging selective prosecution. Franklin conveniently forgets to mention that the government had filed a motion in limine to block the defense from raising such issues. And who signed the motion? Why, Sweet Lou himself.

Seems Franklin is familiar with both selective prosecution and selective memory. Does this man have a shred of credibility left with any living being?

As for Horton, he has so much good material that he needs two posts to attack the absurdities in Franklin's press release. Horton compares Franklin to Victor Hugo's character Javert and notes the similarities between Franklin's protests about "out-of-state" reporters to the charges about "outside agitators" seeking justice in Alabama during the Civil Rights era. Horton also notes that more national reporters, including those from 60 Minutes, are paying attention to the Siegelman case. No wonder Sweet Lou's shorts are feeling tight.

Horton points out the in-state editorial writers who are questioning the government's handling of the Siegelman case and notes that more such editorials are expected in the coming days.

Finally, Horton truly cuts to the chase with this:

"Javert is part of a culture of moral collapse and decrepitude. A culture that has taken a vise-like grip on the Justice Department in the Bush Administration."

Moral collapse is exactly right. Such a collapse is at the heart of the Paul Minor prosecution in Mississippi, a subject we will return to in a bit. And it is at the heart of my Legal Schnauzer case, which is the whole reason for this blog getting started.

What do a I mean by moral collapse in my case?

I'm talking about judges in Shelby County, Alabama--Ron Jackson, J. Michael Joiner, and G. Dan Reeves--repeatedly making unlawful rulings, butchering statutory, procedural, and case law in the process.

I'm talking about a rogue attorney--William E. Swatek--who has an almost 30-year record of unethical actions in Alabama courts. And yet, because his son Dax Swatek is a "consultant" and campaign manager for Republican governor Bob Riley, Bill Swatek is free to file fraudulent lawsuits without any fear of being held accountable.

And for good measure, Bill Swatek's client--my neighbor Mike McGarity--has a criminal record dating back some 30 years, with at least eight convictions that I'm aware of. And yet self-righteous, tough-on-crime, "strict constructionist" Republican judges repeatedly make unlawful rulings in his favor.

And finally, I'm talking about Alabama's appellate courts, which have been stacked with Republicans thanks to the efforts of Karl Rove and William Canary. The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals and the Alabama Supreme Court are every bit as corrupt as their brethren in Shelby County. Appellate judges abuse the state's "no-opinion affirmance" rule to uphold bogus trial-court findings without having to issue explanations that are not supported by law.

Moral collapse indeed. Hopefully the Congressional investigation will shine a light on it. You can rest assured we will shine a light on it here at Legal Schnauzer.

1 comment:

Never fear Legal Schnauzer. Suppablogga is here to help shed more light on Karl Rove's shenanigans. Back in 2000, I was working as a volunteer for the Pamela Baschab for Chief Justice Campaign. Karl Rove and then GOP Chairman Wynton Blount told Justice Baschab that she could not run for Chief Justice because Exxon and the Business Council of Alabama had pre-ordained Harold See as the nominee. Now, I'm no fan of Justice Roy Moore's Paleoconservative, Libertarian politics, however, I was proud to see a fellow native son of the Gadsden Area upset the Country Club Republicans. While I disagree with him politically, I admire Judge Moore. Like him, I grew up dirt poor in the Gadsden Area, my first job was at Piggly Wiggly and I managed to graduate law school despite my family's lack of resources. Read more at http://novationeering.com/legalpress